A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
Rodger Nichols photo
A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
Rodger Nichols photo
A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
Rodger Nichols photo
A turbine at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
BICKLETON — One of the 133 turbines at Avengrid's Big Horn wind farm south of Schrantz Road near Bickleton in eastern Klickitat County fell over during a recent windstorm. It appears to have failed at a connection between two segments of the tower.
The GE Energy 1.5sle turbines used at that facility are older models, with a tower height of 260 feet (80 meters). The nacelle weighs about 50 tons, the rotor and hub about 31 tons and the tower around 71 tons, making it more than 164 tons in all. That's a lot of weight to come crashing down.
The towers were installed in two phases in 2007 and 2010. GE rated the lifespan of that model at 20 to 25 years, which means the earlier phase turbines are nearing the lower edge of that estimate.
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